Ultrahigh-frequency coupling means



Aug. 11, 1953 E TH'AS 2,648,814

ULTRAHIGH-FREQUENCY COUPLING MEANS Filed Nov. 22, 1949 INVENTOR. o 40 A Z/EBNEQ, BEE/ 4 EQ, WJQQEL, HEQz/e; and CALDWELL. ATTORNEYS.

coupling means Patented Aug. 11, 1953 ULTRAHIGH-FREQUENCY COUPLING MEANS Edwin P. Thias, Los Angeles, Calif., assignor to Standard Coil Products 00., Inc., Chicago, 111,, a corporation of Illinois Application November 22, 1949, Serial No. 128,7 09

6 Claims.

This invention relates to a turret type tuning unit and particularly to features thereof for adapting a turret type tuning unit, designed for operation at very high frequencies to operation at ultra high frequencies.

The present invention relates to means for adapting a tuner of the type described in copending application of Edwin P. Thias and Warren W. White, Serial No. 40,394, filed July 23, 1948, now Patent No. 2,496,183, to ultra high frequency operation. The copending application referred to describes and claims the mechanical features of a turret adapted to removably hold a plurality of pairs of panels. Each pair of panels mounts complementary circuit components having external contacts adapted to be brought in position, by rotation of the turret, to be contacted by stationary contactor elements effective to incorporate the components of the pair of panels in an external circuit. According to the disclosure of the copending application, the panels of each pair are completely insulated from each other and are separated by a metallic shield. It is an object of the present invention to provide means whereby the circuit components on each of a pair of removable panels may be electrically coupled independently of any connections external to the turret. In other words, the panels are so constructed that when mounted on the turret in the manner described in the copending application, the circuit components will be electrically coupled in the desired manner at all times. It is, therefore, an object of this invention to provide means to adapt a multi-panel circuit component-supporting assembly for use with panels electrically connected together.

It is a further object of this invention to provide removable panels for a turret type tuning means to adapt a tuner, designed for very high frequency operation, to operation at ultra high frequencies.

It is a further object of this invention to accomplish the adaptation set forth above by a change in the structure of the removable panels only.

It is another object of this invention to accomplish such adaptation by providing electrical between adjacent panels mounted on a common support.

It is a still further object of this invention to accomplish the above-described adaptation in a simple and economical manner.

Further objects and advantages will become apparent as the description proceeds in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a turret assembly with panels of the present invention mounted thereon, certain portions of the turret structure being shown in section;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary view of one specific embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary view, with parts shown in section, of a further specific embodiment of the invention; and

Fig. 4 is a further enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken substantially along the line 4-4 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 1 illustrates generally a turret type support for circuit components, as fully described in the copending application referred to above, but with the removable panels thereon incorporating the invention herein described.

Briefly, the turret structure comprises a central shaft 2 having spaced paralel metallic plates 4, 6 and 8 fixedly mounted thereon. The end plates 4 and 8 are provided with peripheral notches H1 adapted to receive tongue portions 12 of the removable panel structures. Fixed to the outer face of each of the discs or plates 4 and 8 is a retainer structure I4 comprising a plate of spring material, preferably metal, having radially extending spring fingers l6 overlying the tongue portions l2 of the removable panels.

The central plate 6 is provided with a circumferential series of openings therethrough at a radius substantially equal to the radial distance of the notches [0, previously described, from the shaft 2. The openings through the central plate 6 are separated by radially extending portions 18. The outer periphery of the plate 6 may be serrated or scalloped to provide an indexing structure, all as clearly described in the copending application.

The removable panels 20 and 22, having the tongues l2, are also provided with extending projections 24 and 26, respectively, at their other ends and so proportioned and positioned as to extend into the openings in the plate 6 to maintain the inner ends of the panels 20 and 22 in assembled relationship on the turret, also as described in detail in the copending application above-identified.

According to the disclosure of the copending application, the panel 20 may have mounted thereon circuit components comprising an oscillator inductance and other circuit components. The panel 22, of the copending disclosure, is con templated to support antenna coupling means. In operation of such a unit, as described in the copending case, the plate 6 constitutes a shield to prevent electrical coupling between the components on the two panels.

Rotation of the turret structure is accomplished to bring the external contacts 28 into position to engage fixed contacting elements to incorporate the components of an adjacent pair of panels 2lJ--22 into a fixed external circuit.

The structure described in the copending application is not adaptable for use at ultra high frequencies becausje of the inherently high inductan'ceand'capacitance of the "external switching contacts. In order to make successful adaptation to ultra high frequencies, it is desirable to include as one of the componentsiompanel 22 the high frequency mixing circuits for a superheterodyne type receiver. In order to successfully operate said mixing circuits, it =1s necessary that a definite and controllable amount of high frequency energy from the oscillator circuits mounted on the panel 2|] be fed throughen electrical path to said mixing circuits.

To accomplish the necessary transfer o"f "energy to the components of the panel 22, the 1 panels are provided with ='conductors, preferably embedded "in the insulating bo'dies thereof, in -such a way that when the panels are in "position n 'tlre tu'rret, the-'conduc'tors' will be in such relative position -=as to constitute an energ-transferrin circuit des shown in Figs. 1, 2 and-4pm conductor 30, which may be suitably electrically connected-to an i oscillator coil 3-2 thr'ough a 'capacitor 94, is embedded in the body :or 'the panel 20, which body is constructed of an insulating material. The 'conductor ed -enteritis throughan "end 1 portion of the panel 2'0 at 'the porti'on there'oiwhich extends into one of the I openings in the plate 5 andwniem normally incontactwit'h asimilar end -portion -or the panel 2.22. :In :the embod-imam: of Figs Hand- 2, the conductor 30 extends 5 beyond the endf the panel 29 and. into a resilientrnetallic so'cketi member-ii-ifi mounted in a bore t3 m ths body ot panel'izz. i'llhetsocket id rnay have a' tab 30 extending zithroughlthe inn f-ace oft e panelz'zziand suitably connected. tla'rGugh s'u" means as a rectifierMZLandiIJF. transformer p mary mrtoaa circuit at, resonant at -tlie desired ultra high frequency.

l'he socket member 3 6 imay be; a. split J cylin- 'd ricalst'r-u "ture as shown in 'fifigsjxziand'le, aadapt- --ed tores' entiy grip the projecting'end portion of -the con u'ctor -iid. Such a:connectiomestablishes a direct ele'ct'rical path b'etween coinponents on 1 the pan els from the turret for substitution or pan'e'ls'of l-ike constiluctionhavin'g differentnom- -ponez'it vames. a

Fig. 3 illustrates a modified form-of c'onnecll tion,- ein' a ccnductorflflembedded un -the panel (corresponding to the panel d ilofhFig. i) -*exter'ids therebeyorid into an :opening 48 :in the panel tw. Ai -second:conductor dllsimilarly embedded in the body of -theipanel 'fl K extends -thereb'e-yond ir-ito arr-"opening 52 in the 'endiportors 'fiil 5 and 5t extend past each other in spaced parallel relationship and material of whichtthe 7 panels 2's and 22 are-madeoccupies amaj'or portion of the space '--therebetween anchconstitutes a- "dielectricof high-specific inductive capatitybetween-the plates defined by the end=portions of "the 'conducto'rs3il"and5 Insu ch arr-arrange- "merit" as shown irfFigJ 3, the capacito'rfld, de-- ated and'the capacitythereofsupplied'lbythe re- .un'iei'ans-i-between-whe componentsirof anys=pair of panels and the present invention contemplates plingi between circuit-components: on..said-.pair of= 'panels.

Sail-d panel.

4 Number 4 the provision of any :number of such icoupling means between'a single-pair of panels.

Clearly other specific forms of connector other than that shown in Figs. 2 and 4 may be employedsince suitable means are well known in the art and readily available.

Although a limited number of specific embodimerits-oi the invention have been illustrated and *describedherein, it is to be understood that the invention is notto be limited thereto but may encompass other modifications falling fairly within the scope of the appended claims.

"I claim:

1. A pair of detachably interlocking panels zutilized in television-turrettype tuning units, a shielding member mounted between said panels and supporting said panels, at least oneconductor :carried by each of said panels, each .of

said conductors protruding from one. end of one ponents 'mounted on the other of'saidpanels-and 1 extending through sa-id shielding -member, said -shiel'ding member effectively isolating the -.re- "mainingcircuit components on the said one of said panels from the remainingcircuitcomponents onthe other or said. panels.

2. Awning-unit as defined iii/claim: 1=-wherein the end of one of said conductors is formedwas resilient sccket a-nd' the end of the other conductorof the-pairtis 'formed as :a-plug member receivable in said socket to effect saidcoupling. 3. A' tuning unites-defined in claim I ldvherein the adjacent ends-of said conductors are win a spaced relationship when saidpanelsere-mounted son said unit to thereby e'fiect capacity.-cou- 4. A tuning unit as defined in claim: 1 wherein the ends of-said conductors.-.are.-.arrangedzto exr i tend past each other I in spaced .parallel 2136313.-

tion'ship 1'30 thereby 'efiect: capacity rcouplinga between circuit components on said .pairiof. =panels.

- 5.:A tuningunit as defined in claim: 4, .wherein --at least a portion of the space-between the-spaced ends of saidconductors is-occupiedby insulating material of said panels to increasethe capacity of said 4 coupling.

6. Ina tuning :unit comprisinga-pluralityof -=circuit elements individually mounted on panels;

a connection between a pair of said--elements comprising-a capacitor; one electrode of a said capacitor beingcarriedbyoneof saidpanels; the "other electrode a of said capacitor being carried by the other of said panels; releasable supports for said-panels positioning: said panelsin-predea predetermined spaced relation l1083.Ch--06h81 producing apredeterrnihed capacitance each of saidelectrodesextending into one of: said panels for connection tcsaid circuit-elements carried by E'DWIN P. References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Neesen -J.u1y 19. 1938 Thias et a1 Jan. 31, 1950 

